Frankly, we all dress our hot dogs a different way

A look at how hot dogs are served in different ballparks across the country.

Dina Gerdeman

Whenever I go to Red Sox games, my eyes wander off the field and into the stands pretty quickly. Before the first inning is over, you can bet I’m be hunting down the hot dog guy.

It’s how it’s always been.

Whenever my dad took me to Cubs games as a kid, it was hard to focus on the game for long. (The Cubs were always losing. Still are.) For me, it was all about the food, specifically the hot dog.

Ballparks are now serving all kinds of culinary alternatives to the traditional hot dog. They’ve got pasta, salads, corned beef, fruit cups and sushi. (Sushi? At a ballpark?)

But hot dogs still remain the all-American baseball staple. It is estimated that 30 million hot dogs will be wolfed down at major league stadiums this baseball season – enough to round the bases 41,776 times, according to the National Hot Dog and Sausage Council.

Yes, there is such a thing.

Fenway Park serves 1.4 million hot dogs a year – or more than 20,000 per game. Every game day, at least one of those dogs has Kevin Haggerty’s name written on it.

“When you go to a game, just look at where the lines are. Hot dogs dominate,” said Haggerty, resident district manager for Aramark, which provides concessions at Fenway Park. “People walk up (to the concession stand) and say, ‘Oh, look at all the food they have, how nice,’ and then they say, ‘I’ll have two hot dogs.’”

Many cities proudly serve their own signature hot dogs, and ballparks often follow suit, which means your hot dog will look a lot different depending on which ballpark you’re ordering it in.

“All across the country, people really do prefer their hot dog to be prepared a certain way, and they expect to find it that way at the baseball stadium,” said Patrick Wilson, spokesman for the National Hot Dog & Sausage Council in Washington, D.C. “We find that (ballparks) really try to make the hot dog their own, so that it suits the local flavors and tastes of what people want.”

We’re not talking only about toppings, although toppings are important. How the hot dog is cooked – boiled, grilled, steamed – and even what kind of bun it is cradled in are also crucial.

Being from Chicago, I’m partial to the poppy seed bun. At the risk of inviting hate mail, I have to ask: What’s with these “New England style” buns that look like two pieces of Wonder bread stuck together? I don’t get it.

But I guess I don’t have to. It is possible, right even, to respect each region’s hot dog flair.

If you were to tour of ballparks around the country just to check out the hot dogs, this is what you’d find:

At Minute Maid Park in Houston, the Texas dog has chili, cheese and jalapeno peppers.

At Turner Field in Atlanta, the Georgia dog is “dragged through the garden” and topped with cole slaw, chili and onion relish. “Cole slaw is really popular in the South,” Wilson said.

At Coors Field in Colorado, the Rockie Dog is a foot-long with grilled peppers and onions – and sometimes sauerkraut.

At Shea Stadium in New York, a kosher all-beef dog is served with sauerkraut, diced onions and deli-style mustard.

At Wrigley Field and U.S. Cellular Field in Chicago, a hot dog is served on a poppy seed bun with yellow mustard, cucumbers, dill pickle spears, tomato wedges, green relish, diced onion, sport peppers and celery salt.

“People are very serious about their hot dogs here – what’s on it and how you eat it,” said David Burns, executive chef with Levy Restaurants at Wrigley Field in Chicago.

In Milwaukee, the bratwurst beats out the hot dog. It is grilled and served on a crusty roll, topped with sauerkraut and spicy brown mustard.

“In Milwaukee, we find that brats outsell hot dogs two to one because brats are so much more preferred in that area of the country,” Wilson said. “You could give away hot dogs and brats would still outsell them.”

In Cincinnati, the hot dog is topped with Cincinnati chili (spiced not only with chili powder and paprika, but with nutmeg, cinnamon and even chocolate), plus mild cheddar cheese, diced onions and Ohio’s own Bertman Ball Park mustard.

At PNC Park in Pittsburgh, a hot dog has diced tomato, shredded provolone cheese, coleslaw, grilled onions and french fries.

At Chase Field in Phoenix, a hot dog comes with nacho cheese sauce, cooked chorizo and fried tortilla strips.

And of course there’s the Fenway Frank: a steamed hot dog served with brown mustard and relish on a New England-style split-top bun.

The type of hot dog served differs by region, too. In the Northeast, people tend to go for all-beef and often kosher dogs, whereas Westerners favor chicken or turkey dogs. The rest of the country goes either for beef or a beef-and-pork mixture, Wilson said.

Most West Coast stadiums grill their hot dogs, while East Coast stadiums tend to steam theirs, said Haggerty, who has been selling hot dogs for 30 years at various parks, including Soldier Field, Wrigley Field and Dodger Stadium.

You’ll notice that ketchup is not a traditional topping at any of the 10 ballparks mentioned.

Hot dog aficionados look down their noses at anyone who squirts the red stuff on a dog. Wilson said it’s considered unacceptable for anyone older than 18.

“Ketchup is a no-no,” said Wilson, who prefers a grilled hot dog with mustard. “Mustard is the preferred topping, and that’s the way it should be.”

It is believed that hot dogs and baseball have gone together as far back as the late 1890s and early 1900s, said Bruce Kraig of Chicago, who is writing a book about the history of the hot dog.

In his opinion, hot dog concessionaires have greatly improved the ballpark hot dog. He recalled eating hot dogs in the 1950s that tasted like cardboard.

“I can taste them now. They were awful,” he said. “Nowadays the technology of keeping them moist makes them better. And people expect better food at ballparks now, especially if you’re going to spend $5 on a hot dog.”

One thing Haggerty knows for sure: Don’t try to mess with what the fans in any particular stadium know and love. Haggerty has seen competitors at other stadiums try to make changes to a town’s traditional hot dog, only to be beaten back by rabid dog lovers.

“God help you if you want to change,” Haggerty said. “The fans will let you know right away if you try to mess with what’s considered the institutionalized favorite.”

I don’t feed my kids too many hot dogs. You’ll notice this story didn’t delve too deeply into what’s in a hot dog. It will always be one of those things we just don’t want to know.

But when we’re spending the day at Fenway Park, there’s no doubt my 6-year-old son will be right there with me, hunting down the hot dog guy.

We certainly won’t be interested in the sushi.

Contact Dina Gerdeman at dgerdeman@ledger.com.

BREAKOUTS

Recpies Bring Ballparks Closer to Home

Arizona dog

1 all-beef foot long hot dog

1 foot-long bun

1 4 cup nacho cheese sauce

1 4 cup cooked chorizo sausage

1 fresh corn tortilla

Cook the chorizo in a skillet over medium heat until browned completely. Separately, heat cheese sauce. Cut fresh corn tortillas into thin strips and place in a deep fryer at 350 degrees until crispy. Remove and place on paper towels to absorb excess grease. Sprinkle with salt. Grill the hot dog. Place the hot dog on the bun and top with cheese sauce, chorizo and crispy tortilla strips. Serve immediately.

Chicago dog

1 all-beef foot-long hot dog

1 foot-long bun

2 cucumber spears

2 pickle spears

3 tomato wedges

1 tbsp. green relish

1 tbsp. yellow mustard

1 tbsp. diced white onion

4 sport peppers

Celery salt to taste

Steam the hot dog. Place the hot dog on the bun. Place cucumber and pickle spears between the hot dog and bun on opposite sides. Tuck the tomato wedges in next to the cucumber. Top with green relish, mustard, white onion, sport peppers and celery salt. Serve immediately.

The use of ketchup is forbidden.

Cincinnati dog

1 all-beef foot-long hot dog

1 foot-long bun

1 4 cup spicy beanless chili

2 tbsp. nacho cheese

6 slices pickled jalapenos

1 tbsp. diced yellow onion

Heat the nacho cheese and chili in separate sauce pans. Grill the hot dog. Place the hot dog on the bun and top with chili, cheese sauce, pickled jalapenos and diced yellow onion.

Pittsburgh dog

1 all-beef foot-long hot dog

1 foot-long bun

1 2 tomato, diced

1 4 cup shredded provolone cheese

1 4 cup of coleslaw

1 4 cup sliced grilled onions

French fries to garnish

Slice the onion and grill until they become translucent. Set aside to be used as topping. Dice the tomato and set aside to be used for topping. Fry French fries in hot oil until crispy. Remove and place on paper towels to absorb excess grease. Grill the hot dog. Place the hot dog in the bun. Garnish the hot dog with grilled onions, coleslaw, diced tomatoes, French fries and provolone cheese.

Dodger dog

1 Farmer John all meat hot dog (10 inches, 1 6 lb.)

Served with a variety of toppings, the most popular being chopped onions and yellow mustard.

Texas dog

1 all-beef foot-long hot dog

1 foot-long bun

1 4 cup cheddar cheese spread

1 tbsp. barbecue sauce

2 strips chopped crispy bacon

1 2 cup Crispy Fried Onions

Barbecue spice rub to taste

Dice the bacon in 1 2 -inch pieces. Cook in a skillet over medium heat until crispy. Remove and place on paper towels to absorb excess grease. Grill the hot dog. Place the hot dog in the bun. Spread the cheddar cheese spread between the bun and the dog. Top with barbecue sauce, bacon and onions.

To prepare the crispy fried onions: slice yellow onions very thin and toss in flour seasoned with salt and pepper. Shake off excess flour. Fry in heavy brown sauce pot until crispy and golden brown.